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Friday, August 24, 2012

Why I Love Double Point Needles

I have two projects I will write about next week that required double point needles (dpn's). Working on these projects (socks and 24 month sized mittens) reminded me of why I love using dpns so now I'm sharing my love of them with you.

They are invaluable for repairing dropped stitches. A smaller dpn will allow you to repair a stitch you notice was dropped so many rows down you would be tempted not to repair it at all. Unfortunately I've done this many times.

You can make an awful lot with them: mittens, socks, hats, and if you lost all your straight needles you could make scarves and other small flat projects too.

I use them for making cables instead of buying separate cable needles. I also use crochet hooks for cables when my dpns are not handy.

I use dpns (or a crochet hook) to take care of the ends of my yarn when I finish what I've been working on, to weave the ends into the body of the project. I use straight needles for this too but I prefer a dpn because they are shorter and easier for me to work with.

I'm looking forward to showing you the little boys' car mittens I made. There will be photos and a pattern up on Tuesday or Wednesday so check back then.